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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-21-14 IN THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA ORPHANS' COURT DIVISION N_ n In re: ) o s m C-� ALMA H. ENGLE ) No. 21-2014-0045 m = 9_ —I o Late of the Township of Upper Allen ) o 0 o Deceased c PETITION TO COMPEL THE PAYMENT OF DECEDENT'S DEB--bsH AND ESTATE ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES ' s -n FROM DECEDENT'S REVOCABLE MANAGEMENT TRUST TO THE HONORABLE JUDGE OF SAID COURT: Fulton Bank,N.A., your Petitioner, files this Petition to compel Respondent to remit $58,000.00 to decedent's estate to be used for the payment of decedent's debts, inheritance tax and administrative expenses of the estate and in support thereof avers that: 1. Your Petitioner is a National Bank with principal offices located at One Penn Square, Lancaster, PA 17602. 2. Alma H. Engle, the Decedent, died at Messiah Lifeways, 125 Messiah Circle Mechanicsburg, PA 17055-8609 on December 26, 2013, at the age of 103 years and was domiciled in Upper Allen Township, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania. The decedent died with a will bearing date of April 1, 2013, a copy of which is attached hereto, made a part hereof, and marked as EXHIBIT "A". Your Petitioner probated decedent's will to the above number and term. 3. Alma H. Engle,the decedent's probate estate consists of approximately Eleven Thousand ($11,000.00) dollars in liquidated assets. 4. At the time of her death, further assets totaling approximately Eight Hundred Fifty- four Thousand Three Hundred Twenty-nine and 30/100 ($854,329.30) were held in a"Revocable Management Trust" entered into with Hamilton Bank, now Wells Fargo Bank,N.A. on January 6, 1989. A copy of this document is attached hereto and marked as EXHIBIT`B". 5. Under ITEM II of that document, there is no provision for the payment of decedent's debts or estate expenses. The 25 year old two page document at best, is poorly drafted by Respondent's predecessor 6. Further, under ITEM II of the Revocable Management Trust, any balance on hand at the time of death is to be paid over to the beneficiaries named in decedent's last will and testament. 7. Under decedent's last will and testament twenty-five (25%) percent of the estate passes to decedent's nieces and nephews and the remaining seventy-five (75%)percent passes to named charities. 8. Petitioner estimates that in addition to the $11,000.00 of probate assets in its hands, an additional $58,000.00 will be needed to conclude the administration of the decedent' estate as follows: A. Probate costs $735.50 B . Estate legal advertising 265.54 C. Funeral Bill Cocklin Funeral Home 10,220.72 D. Lifeways at Messiah Village, final months charges 9,249.20 E. Pennsylvania Inheritance Tax in discount on 25% of the estate payable to Decedent's nieces and nephews 28,000.00 F. Preparation and payment of Decedent's final living Federal and State income taxes 5,000.00 TOTAL $53,470.95 9. In anticipation of other additional and reasonable administrative expenses, Petitioner wrote to Wells Fargo on February 28, 2014 requesting that initially, the sum of $58,000 be transmitted in order for the Executor to meet the above expenses, noting that any unused funds would be returned to Respondent for distribution under the terms of decedent's will. A copy of that letter is attached hereto and marked as EXHIBIT "C:" 10. When Petitioner called as a follow up to her letter dated February 28, 2014, Respondent's Ethan T. Pond assured Petitioner that the $58,000.00 check was being processed. 11. When Petitioner called a second time, Ethan Pond said that Petitioner would receive Respondent's check on Wednesday March 19, 2014. 12. This 5% discount period for the payment of Pennsylvania Inheritance Tax will expire on Wednesday March 26, 2014. 13. Should the discount period expire, Respondent should be surcharged the approximately $1,400.00 in savings that was lost. The Attorney General of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as parens patriae of all charities, would disapprove an accounting that reflects the additional $1,400.00 expense which is totally unnecessary. 14. Petitioner further requests that any counsel fees relating to the preparation and presentation of this petition to the Court be assessed to respondent. 15. Because Petitioner only learned on March 19, 2014 that Respondent had decided not to transmit the requested funds to Petitioner, there was not time for a hearing on this petition to be held before the expiration of the discount date on March 26, 2014. MAY, METZGER AND ZIMMERMAN, LLP BY: JOM S MAY, FhQtARE 49 North Duke St et Lancaster, PA 17602 (717) 299-1181 Cell phone (717) 951-6044 Attorney for Petitioner Attorney I.D. #07028 VERIFICATION Fulton Bank,N.A. verifies that the statements made in the foregoing Petition are true and correct and it is understood that false statements herein are made subject to the penalties of 18 Pa.C.S. Section 4904 relating to unsworn falsification to authorities. FULTON BANK, N.A. 1t�Ul�'1 17( 'u GERRI L. CALDWELL, CTFA Dated: March 20, 2014 I,ALMA H. ENGLE, of the Township of Upper Allen, County of Cumberland and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, being of sound and disposing mind, memory and understanding do make publish and declare this to be my last will and testament hereby revoking any and all wills by me at any time heretofore made. ITEM I. I order and direct my Executors hereinafter named to pay my expenses of last illness and funeral as soon after my decease as may be convenient including a suitable marker for my grave if the same has not been purchased during my lifetime. ITEM II. I authorize and empower my Executors hereinafter named to sell at either public or private sale, whichever shall be for the best interests of my estate, any and all real estate of which I may die seized, and to give to the purchaser or purchasers thereof, good and sufficient deed or deeds therefor as fully and effectively'as I could do if living, and the proceeds thereof together with all the rest residue and remainder of my estate of whatsoever nature and kind and wheresoever the same may be at the time of my death, I give and bequeath as follows: A. Five (5%)percent thereof I give and bequeath to the Lancaster Brethren In Christ Church, absolutely B. Five (5%)percent thereof I give and bequeath to Messiah College, Grantham,PA., absolutely. C. Twenty-five(25%)percent thereof I give and bequeath to my nieces and nephews living at the time of my death. At the time of the drafting of this my last will and testament, I have nine nieces and nephews who are living. Should any niece or nephew predecease me, his or her share shall be divided among my surviving nieces and nephews. D. Thirty-five(35%)percent thereof I give and bequeath to the Brethren In Christ ' Church World Missions, 431 Grantham Road,Mechanicsburg, PA 17055-5812; and DUIIBIT "A" E. The remaining thirty (30%)thereof I give and bequeath to Messiah Lifeways, formerly Messiah Village, Mechanicsburg, PA. ITEM III. I order and direct that all Pennsylvania inheritance tax and Federal estate tax, if any,that become due and payable as the result of my death,whether or not assets subject thereto pass under the terms of this my last will and testament, shall be paid out of the residue of my estate. ITEM IV. In the event I am married at the time of my death, I authorize my Executor to join with my spouse or my spouse's Personal Representative in the filing of a joint income tax return for any period for which such a return may be permitted,without requiring said spouse or said spouse's estate to indemnify my estate against liability for the tax attributable to my spouse's income, and to consent,for federal gift tax purposes,to having gifts made by my spouse during my lifetime treated as having been made one-half by me. ITEM V. I authorize my Executor to claim any expenses of administration of my estate, as income tax deductions upon any income tax return or returns whenever the considered opinion is that such action will achieve an overall reduction in the aggregate of income and death taxes. No compensating adjustments between income and principal shall be required to be made as a result of such action. ITEM VI. I further authorize my Executor in their sole discretion,to elect to allocate capital gains and losses between principal and income in order to achieve maximum savings in taxes or costs of administration. ITEM VII. I name, constitute and appoint Fulton Bank,N.A., Executor under this my last will and testament. I order and direct that my Executor shall not be required to post bond for 2 7 77 / the faithful performance of its duties. IN WITNESS WHEREOF,I have hereunto set my hand and seal this I"day of April, A. D. Two Thousand Thirteen(2013). SEAL) ALMA H. ENGLE THIS INSTRUMENT,consisting of five (5)typewritten pages,was by the abovenamed Testatrix, on the date hereof, signed, sealed,published and declared to be said Testatrix's last will and testament. /A 41, residing at 6a4IA146 / residing at COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA ) ) SS: COUNTY OF LANCASTER I ) I,ALMA H. ENGLE, whose name is signed to the attached or foregoing instrument, having been duly qualified according to law, do hereby acknowledge that I signed and executed the instrument as my Last Will; and that I signed it willingly and as my free and voluntary act for the purposes therein expressed. ALMA H, ENGLE 3 i Sworn to or affirmed and acknowledged before me by ALMA H. ENGLE, this 1 day of April, 2013. John S ay, Es 0ear duly admitted Attorney before of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA ) ) SS: COUNTY OF LANCASTER ) We,JOIfN of wo t"ejvfH , J R and the witnesses whose names are signed to the attached or foregoing instrument,being duly qualified according to law, do depose and say that we were present and saw the Testatrix sign and execute the instrument as Testatrix's last will; that the Testatrix signed willingly and executed it freely and voluntarily for the purposes therein expressed; that each subscribing witness in the hearing and sight of the Testatrix signed the will as a witness; and that to the best of our knowledge the Testatrix was at that time eighteen or more years of age,of sound mind and under no constraint or undue influence. Witness �� y —� Witness 4 Sworn to or affirmed and subscribed to before me by J o ItN M WO1-6o617u&,jt2, and witnesses,this I5t day of pril, A. D. 2013. John y, Esquire, duly admitted Attorney before t e Bar of the upreme Court of Pennsylvania COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA ) ) SS: COUNTY OF LANCASTER ) On this,the 151 day of April,A. D. 2013,before me, the undersigned officer, personally appeared John S. May, Esquire,known to me or satisfactorily proven to be a member of the Bar of the highest court of Pennsylvania, and certified that he was personally present and took the foregoing acknowledgment and affidavits of the Testator and witnesses respectively. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I hereunto set my hand and official seal. Notary Public My Commission Expires: Tx � NOTARIUSM BONNIEY.6INYSFM,NOTARYPII E CITYOF M CAS K lANG1M COUNIT mycal I�10 RES RIN ZOt6 E.F �R re 7 h 'i It 5 REVOCABLE MAGEMENT TRUST beteen Alm a, d _ r4 - Hanf��I an;Bank FYHl'B IT Y 300-0]-009 (0(187) A CoreS „es;'Bank " ' Hamilton Bank A CoreStates Bank //�] // /REVOCABLE MANAGEMENT TRUST I, . . . .(�1/nfCt_. . r].,.. .i9!1�{(4' .... . , of . . ......44 N.G�LS �s�.... . . .... . County, Pennsylvania, hereby transfer certain property to Hmitilton Bank as trustee, to hold it and any additions to it IN TRUST as follows: DISPOSrIWE PROVISIONS I. . Lifetime Trust: During my lifetime, my.trustee shall keep the principal invested and shall distribute the net income and the principal as follows: A. As much-even if all-of the net income and the principal as I may from time to time direct in writing shall be paid either to me or as I may specify; B. As much of the net income and the principal as my corporate trustee may from time to time think desirable for my or my spouse's welfare, comfort or support shall be applied dire6dy for those purposes if I am, in my corporate trustee's opinion, disabled in any way; and C. Any remaining net income shall from time to time be accumulated and added to the principal. II. Disposition at Death: Upon my death my trustee shall pay the then remaining principal and any undistributed income to the beneficiaries and in the amounts set forth in my Last Will and Testament, provided, however, no such funds shall be used to pay my bequests for a specific sum of money unless, and to thg extent,that the assets of my estate shall be insufficient to fulfill any such bequest.In the event I die intestate,I direct my trusteeio pay the entire corpus of this trust to my personal representative for distribution as part of my estate. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS III. Powers Reserved by Me: I shall have the following powers,exercisable whenever and as often as I may wish: A. To withdraw any part or all of the principal; B. To add to this trust upon approval and acceptance by my trustee; and C. To alter or revoke this trust in whole or in part by a writifig-other than a will-delivered to my trustee; provided that no alteration-shall increase my corporate trustee's responsibilities without its written,consent. IV. Protective Provision: No interest in income or principal shall be assignable by, or available to anyone havinga claim against, a beneficiary before actual payment to the beneficiary. V. Management Provisions: I authorize my trustee: A. To retain and to invest in all forms of real and personal property(including common trust funds managed by Hamilton Bank and/or any of its affiliates and stock or other securities of CoreStates Financial Corp.),without being confined to investments authorized by a statutory list and without being required Wiliversify; B. To compromise claims and to abandon any property which;in my trustee's opinion, is of little or no value; C. To hold reasonable amounts of cash uninvested in any bankor trust company, including Hamilton Bank, for such periods of time as my trustee deems reasonable for the efficient ad`ministration of any trust hereunder; D. To hold property unregistered or in the name of a nominee;. E. To borrow from anyone, even if the lender is a trustee hereunder, and to pledge property as security for repayment of the funds borrowed; PAGETWO F. To sell at public or private sale,to exchange or to lease for any period of time,any real or personal property, and to give options for sales or leases; G. To join in any merger, reorganization, voting-trust plan or other concerted action of security holders, and to delegate discretionary duties with respect thereto; H. To pay funds disbursed during my disability to such person or persons as my corporate trustee may select(the receipt of such person or persons to discharge my trustee completely as to such payments); I. To allocate any property received or charge incurred to principal or income or partly to each,without regard to any law defining principal and income,as my corporate trustee may think appropriate; and J. To distribute in cash or in kind. r. These authorities shall extend to all property at any time held by my trustee and shall continue in full force until the actual distribution of all such property.Alt powers,authorities and discretion granted by this deed shall be in addition to those granted by law and shall be exercisable without court authorization. VI. Compensation: Hamilton Bank shall receive compensation in accordance with its standard schedule of fees in effect while its services are performed. VII. Situs and Governing Law:The sites of all trusts hereunder shall be in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,and all questions regarding the validity,effect,or interpretation of this deed or the administration of the trusts hereunder shall be governed by the law of Pennsylvania. Executed Jan. 6 19 89. wi SPATEOFPENNSYLVANIA ss. COUNTYOF LANCASTER On 1/6, 19 89 , before me, the undersigned officer, personally appeared ALMA B. ENGLE and in due form of law acknowledged the foregoing instrument to be his act and deed and desired the same to be recorded as such. Witness my hand and notarial seal the day and year aforesaid. T 4*Lic tlY nTb1 NOARI i L ot"y SA . A tbtie f My Commission Expires: tar,--em !^faster C-untj, PA my Carmis:ior. Expires Jan, 14, 199C The foregoing deed of trust was delivered, and is hereby accepted, at Lancaster . Pennsylvania.—on--J—au—.-6—.—IV--89.— Hamilton Bank BY --� Direct Dial(717)291-2719 gcaldweII Pfu Ito nfinancialadvisors.com February 28, 2014 Ethan Pond,Trust Administrator Wells Fargo Wealth Management PermDel Trust Center 101 N. Independence Mall E, 6`h Fi Philadelphia, PA 19106 RE: Alma H. Engle Estate—Funds request from Trust Account Dear Ethan: As we discussed on the phone earlier this week, I now realize that Wells Fargo is following the verbiage in the Trust Agreement and will be distributing the trust funds directly to the beneficiaries in accordance with the terms and conditions of the Will. We have accumulated some assets outside of the trust into the Alma H Engle Estate account,totaling just over$11,000. However,those assets will not be sufficient to pay all.of the expenses associated with Alma's final expenses, funeral bill,estate administration expenses,payment of Pennsylvania Inheritance Taxes,etc. My best estimate of the required expenses will be approximately $65,000, plus the amount necessary to prepare Alma's final personal income tax return and any taxes to be paid in conjunction with that return. Based on my calculations, I am asking that you provide a check, payable to the Alma H Engle Estate in the amount of$58,000.00. As we further discussed, the deadline for prepayment of the estimated Pennsylvania Inheritance Taxes is rapidly approaching. Therefore, I would ask that you release the requested funds as soon as possible so we can secure the 5%discount on the amount of inheritance taxes, as well as pay the invoices we have accumulated. When the estate administration is complete, I will provide you with a full accounting of all transactions and supporting documentation,as well as return any unused funds to Wells Fargo. The estate's attorney has asked that I remind you that Fulton Bank, N.A.will not be distributing any funds directly to the beneficiaries. Therefore,Wells Fargo will be required to provide the Attorney General's office with an Accounting and receive their approval before making distributions to the beneficiaries. As you had requested in your initial letter and fallow-up email, I am enclosing a list of the beneficiaries and their addresses for your records. I look forward to working with you on this matter. if my office can be of any further assistance, please feel free to contact me. Sincerely, Gerri L.Caldwell,CTFA, Estate Settlement Officer Clermont Wealth Strategies, a Division of Fulton Bank, N.A. Jglc Enclosure cc: John S. May, Esquire EXHIBIT "C"